Why God’s purity is both terrifying and beautiful
We don’t talk much about holiness anymore.
It’s not a word that shows up in coffee shop conversations or TikTok reels. We’re far more comfortable with words like love, kindness, acceptance, and peace. And don’t get me wrong—God is all of those things. But before we talk about how loving God is, we need to understand how holy He is.
Because if you miss the holiness, you won’t understand the cross.
And if you don’t understand the cross, Heaven will never make sense.
Let’s rewind to a moment in the Old Testament.
The prophet Isaiah has a vision. He sees the Lord—high and lifted up—seated on a throne. Angels are circling around, covering their faces with their wings, crying out:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of His glory.”
And what does Isaiah do?
He doesn’t say, “Wow, this is amazing!”
He doesn’t grab a selfie or start dancing to worship music.
He falls apart.
“Woe to me!” he cries. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips… and my eyes have seen the King.”
Isaiah was a prophet. A spiritual leader. Probably one of the best people in the nation. But when he stood in the presence of God’s holiness, he came unglued.
Why? Because holiness reveals everything. It exposes. It searches. It shines a light that no shadow can hide from.
God is not just a slightly better version of us. He is entirely other.
His holiness isn’t just moral perfection—it’s the blazing purity of His being. His righteousness. His beauty. His justice. His fire.
And here’s the problem: we’re not holy.
And when unholy people get close to a holy God, something has to give.
In the Old Testament, God’s presence was so powerful that people couldn’t just stroll into the Holy of Holies. Only the high priest could enter, and only once a year, and only with blood. And even then, they tied a rope around his ankle in case he died in the presence of God’s holiness.
That’s how serious it was.
You see, God’s holiness isn’t the problem. Our sin is.
We think of sin as little mistakes. Flaws. A bad habit here and there. But sin is cosmic rebellion. It’s treason against the King of the universe. It’s telling the One who made us, “I’ll do it my way.”
And Heaven is not a place where sin can survive.
It would be like trying to bring an icicle into the heart of the sun.
We can’t just waltz into God’s presence. We need a covering. A cleansing. A Mediator. Someone who is holy enough to stand before God—and kind enough to bring us with Him.
That someone is Jesus.
Jesus didn’t die just to forgive your mistakes. He died to make you holy.
To wash you. Cover you. Clothe you in His righteousness.
So when you get to Heaven, you don’t enter by your own goodness—you enter by His.
This is why the cross matters. Without holiness, no one will see the Lord. (Hebrews 12:14) And without the cross, no one is holy.
Let me say it another way:
The cross isn’t just a rescue mission. It’s a holiness transfer.
Jesus took your sin, and gave you His purity.
That’s the only reason Heaven is even an option for people like us.
Let’s circle back to Isaiah. After he falls apart, one of the angels takes a burning coal from the altar and touches his lips. “Your guilt is taken away,” the angel says. “Your sin is atoned for.”
And then—then—Isaiah hears the voice of the Lord. Then he’s ready to be sent.
Before he could serve, he had to be cleansed. Before he could stand, he had to be forgiven.
It’s the same for us.
Holiness is not optional. It’s essential. But here’s the good news:
God doesn’t demand holiness from us—He provides it to us.
Through Christ. Through grace. Through faith. Through a heart that says, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
So yes, Heaven is a place of joy. A place of peace. A place of reunion and rest.
But first and foremost, Heaven is a holy place.
And the only people who can stand in a holy place… are those made holy by Jesus.
